Hot Rod heard the clangs and yells from halfway across the Decepticon base, although most of the Decepticons were pretending that they couldn't. He transformed and raced through the halls, arriving at Galvatron's door in under a minute and tried to pull the door open. Then he tried the door code. And pulled again. And pulled harder. And tried a different code. And pulled yet harder. And pushed for good measure.
Nothing.
He had been locked out, and he could hear how much pain Galvatron was in, how much pain he was inflicting on Cyclonus as his second attempted to calm and restrain him--"GALVATRON! CYCLONUS! LET ME IN!" Roddy banged on the door.
The only response was another roar from Galvatron and a clang as Cyclonus hit something again, hard. And a second or two later, on his comm: "Rodimus." Cyclonus was too distracted to remember that Roddy wasn't, anymore. "Please. Leave us. I will take care of Lord Galvatron."
"No. I won't. I love him, Cyclonus, same as you do. Let me help him. Help you." There was no response for a few terrifying seconds, as the two inside the room grappled. From the sound of it Cyclonus had been pushed to the point of defending himself physically, which wasn't a very good sign. Roddy went back to trying to force the door open.
"Hot Rod." And now Cyclonus remembered. "I can’t protect you both. And you can't take the damage I can. Not anymore."
"Doesn't matter. I will take it. Cyclonus, please. Between the two of us we will be able to subdue him..."
"No. I'll let you in when--" the comm dissolved into static as Galvatron hit Cyclonus again-- "he's not violent anymore. It should be soon."
"Cyclonus!" Hot Rod spoke out loud this time. "Galvatron!" Having discovered that forcing the door wasn't going to work--it was, after all, built to stand up to Galvatron's rages as much as was possible--he set to work picking the lock. He thought he could manage it…
A pair of blue arms wrapped around him and pulled him back. "No breaking into Galvatron's room today, Roddy."
"Not you, too, Scourge!" Roddy allowed Scourge to hold him. For now. "Get me in there!"
"If he breaks you, it'll be a major diplomatic incident, Hot Rod. If he breaks Cyclonus--well." Scourge stopped that sentence right there. "He's not going to break Cyclonus, if he hasn't already." Scourge' grip on him shifted, more embracing than restraining. "Besides, breaking you would break him. Break him worse, that is."
"And having me not there with him, isn't? I can't just stand here and listen…" Roddy started struggling in Scourge's arms.
"You can. And you will. Just like I do." Scourge held on grimly. "Neither of us are built to take that. It was just me in there with him, once, during a particularly bad episode--they had to kill a Sweep to repair me."
Roddy broke off staring at the door to look back at Scourge in horror. "Kill a Sweep?!"
Scourge shrugged. "Me or him. I'm lucky Cyclonus chose me." He paused, realizing that he was, after all, talking to an Autobot. "We don't have to do that anymore, of course. More resources, access to Autobot medics and medical tech, the Constructicons trying to recruit your entire technical and medical staff into their crazy collective…"
"All that tech and it can't--" Roddy's frustration was interrupted by further noise from inside Galvatron's room.
Hot Rod kicked Scourge hard, broke free, and rushed the door again.
"Oww! Hot Rod! Don't let's have a brawl on this side of the door, too. Get away from there." He grabbed Hot Rod's waist again and pulled.
"Roddy...it's better that it was. Really. You're helping. The peace is helping. Just...let Cyclonus do this."
Roddy glared at the door. There hadn't been another clang, and the sounds of Galvatron's voice and Cyclonus's were quiet enough that he couldn't make out the words through the thick walls. And there'd been an emphasis on that last statement that he should perhaps be paying attention to--but he could think about that, later, because Cyclonus had just commed him, "You can come in, now," and Scourge was opening the door, finally.
"Rodimus? My Prime?" Galvatron was sitting on the floor, leaning back against Cyclonus' chest as he embraced and supported his Lord--and, incidentally, hid most of the damage on Cyclonus' chassis, although Roddy could see the dents in his arms and his legs and his twisted and bent antennae, damage that wasn't, really, as extensive as what Cyclonus sometimes got happily and willingly, but was unmistakeably different nonetheless. And the look on his face, as he saw Roddy--someone needed to take care of Cyclonus, and it couldn't be Hot Rod, right now. He opened a private commlink to Scourge: "Cyclonus? Will you?"
Scourge gave him a look of "of course," as he moved around behind and slightly to the side, holding Cyclonus in turn.
Roddy turned all his attention to Galvatron. There was a very slight sparkle off Galvatron's helm, and he didn't seem quite back to himself yet. But his arms were open, and Roddy climbed into his lap, wrapping his arms around his neck. "Always yours." He didn't mention that he was neither Rodimus nor Prime anymore--it wasn't important at the moment.
Cyclonus' arms tightened, protectively, around Galvatron, pulling him closer to him and further from Roddy, but Roddy just followed the motion until they were both half-sitting on Cyclonus who was half-sitting on Scourge. Scourge wrapped Cyclonus in his arms and wings while Roddy settled into Galvatron's embrace and pressed gentle kisses to his lips.
In another context, it would have been wonderful. As it was--they could give Galvatron all they could, Roddy thought. All they had, and still it was not enough.
My apologies for the mood switch
Hot Rod heard the clangs and yells from halfway across the Decepticon base, although most of the Decepticons were pretending that they couldn't. He transformed and raced through the halls, arriving at Galvatron's door in under a minute and tried to pull the door open. Then he tried the door code. And pulled again. And pulled harder. And tried a different code. And pulled yet harder. And pushed for good measure.
Nothing.
He had been locked out, and he could hear how much pain Galvatron was in, how much pain he was inflicting on Cyclonus as his second attempted to calm and restrain him--"GALVATRON! CYCLONUS! LET ME IN!" Roddy banged on the door.
The only response was another roar from Galvatron and a clang as Cyclonus hit something again, hard. And a second or two later, on his comm: "Rodimus." Cyclonus was too distracted to remember that Roddy wasn't, anymore. "Please. Leave us. I will take care of Lord Galvatron."
"No. I won't. I love him, Cyclonus, same as you do. Let me help him. Help you." There was no response for a few terrifying seconds, as the two inside the room grappled. From the sound of it Cyclonus had been pushed to the point of defending himself physically, which wasn't a very good sign. Roddy went back to trying to force the door open.
"Hot Rod." And now Cyclonus remembered. "I can’t protect you both. And you can't take the damage I can. Not anymore."
"Doesn't matter. I will take it. Cyclonus, please. Between the two of us we will be able to subdue him..."
"No. I'll let you in when--" the comm dissolved into static as Galvatron hit Cyclonus again-- "he's not violent anymore. It should be soon."
"Cyclonus!" Hot Rod spoke out loud this time. "Galvatron!" Having discovered that forcing the door wasn't going to work--it was, after all, built to stand up to Galvatron's rages as much as was possible--he set to work picking the lock. He thought he could manage it…
A pair of blue arms wrapped around him and pulled him back. "No breaking into Galvatron's room today, Roddy."
"Not you, too, Scourge!" Roddy allowed Scourge to hold him. For now. "Get me in there!"
"If he breaks you, it'll be a major diplomatic incident, Hot Rod. If he breaks Cyclonus--well." Scourge stopped that sentence right there. "He's not going to break Cyclonus, if he hasn't already." Scourge' grip on him shifted, more embracing than restraining. "Besides, breaking you would break him. Break him worse, that is."
"And having me not there with him, isn't? I can't just stand here and listen…" Roddy started struggling in Scourge's arms.
"You can. And you will. Just like I do." Scourge held on grimly. "Neither of us are built to take that. It was just me in there with him, once, during a particularly bad episode--they had to kill a Sweep to repair me."
Roddy broke off staring at the door to look back at Scourge in horror. "Kill a Sweep?!"
Scourge shrugged. "Me or him. I'm lucky Cyclonus chose me." He paused, realizing that he was, after all, talking to an Autobot. "We don't have to do that anymore, of course. More resources, access to Autobot medics and medical tech, the Constructicons trying to recruit your entire technical and medical staff into their crazy collective…"
"All that tech and it can't--" Roddy's frustration was interrupted by further noise from inside Galvatron's room.
CLANG!
"Kill! Quintessons! Autobots! Traitors! Destroyyyyyy!"
"Mighty One..."
Hot Rod kicked Scourge hard, broke free, and rushed the door again.
"Oww! Hot Rod! Don't let's have a brawl on this side of the door, too. Get away from there." He grabbed Hot Rod's waist again and pulled.
"Roddy...it's better that it was. Really. You're helping. The peace is helping. Just...let Cyclonus do this."
Roddy glared at the door. There hadn't been another clang, and the sounds of Galvatron's voice and Cyclonus's were quiet enough that he couldn't make out the words through the thick walls. And there'd been an emphasis on that last statement that he should perhaps be paying attention to--but he could think about that, later, because Cyclonus had just commed him, "You can come in, now," and Scourge was opening the door, finally.
"Rodimus? My Prime?" Galvatron was sitting on the floor, leaning back against Cyclonus' chest as he embraced and supported his Lord--and, incidentally, hid most of the damage on Cyclonus' chassis, although Roddy could see the dents in his arms and his legs and his twisted and bent antennae, damage that wasn't, really, as extensive as what Cyclonus sometimes got happily and willingly, but was unmistakeably different nonetheless. And the look on his face, as he saw Roddy--someone needed to take care of Cyclonus, and it couldn't be Hot Rod, right now. He opened a private commlink to Scourge: "Cyclonus? Will you?"
Scourge gave him a look of "of course," as he moved around behind and slightly to the side, holding Cyclonus in turn.
Roddy turned all his attention to Galvatron. There was a very slight sparkle off Galvatron's helm, and he didn't seem quite back to himself yet. But his arms were open, and Roddy climbed into his lap, wrapping his arms around his neck. "Always yours." He didn't mention that he was neither Rodimus nor Prime anymore--it wasn't important at the moment.
Cyclonus' arms tightened, protectively, around Galvatron, pulling him closer to him and further from Roddy, but Roddy just followed the motion until they were both half-sitting on Cyclonus who was half-sitting on Scourge. Scourge wrapped Cyclonus in his arms and wings while Roddy settled into Galvatron's embrace and pressed gentle kisses to his lips.
In another context, it would have been wonderful. As it was--they could give Galvatron all they could, Roddy thought. All they had, and still it was not enough.
But it would never keep them from trying.